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Category Archives: Big Rig and Semi Accidents

Peg’s Glorified Ham and Eggs got a brutal interruption to their lunch as some unfortunate man crashed his truck into the restaurant. The individual who was driving the vehicle was a 50 year old local to the Reno area. It is thought that a medical condition or episode might have precipitated the loss of vehicle control that resulted in this crash. The driver was very seriously injured in this Reno truck crash, with a condition said to be life threatening. At last word he was still being treated at Renown Regional Medical Group. Fortunately, he was the only one injured. The rest of the damage was confined to property damage at the restaurant. That damage, while serious enough to warrant maybe a few days of restaurant closure, luckily did not cause any more bodily damage or death. A recent news report of this Nevada truck crash injury interviewed a family with a bundle of children had been looking at maybe getting seated outside just before the accident, but some or all of the kiddos wanted to escape the heat inside instead. Lucky for them it was a hot day, as the truck reportedly hit the post in front of the restaurant and the restaurant itself pretty darn hard. Some windows of the establishment, we understand them to be the big glass ones out front, were hit as well, meaning anyone out there would have also had the potential for being hit with flying and broken glass, as well.

In some cases that we at Benson & Bingham Attorneys at Law have seen, prescription drug interactions can cause vehicle accidents in Nevada when the co-created side effect induces dizziness, slowed reflexes, or even hallucinations or full unconsciousness. This can be the fault of medical malpractice in Nevada in some circumstances. This gentleman, who was said to be about 50 years old, could have a case for compensation for his injuries from the insurance company for the doctor, the pharmaceutical company, or others, depending on what induced his inability to control the vehicle. Benson & Bingham’s top Nevada truck accident injury attorneys know what to look for as we talk with you in a free consultation to see if you have a legal claim to pursue. We’ll let you know where we think you stand, and help you in any way we can.

Sparks police are searching for a car and driver that were involved in a Washoe County automobile accident. The accident happened just on the border of Reno and Sparks. The Sparks car crash killed a man and has been ruled authorities are ruling the accident a hit and run. Police found the man at the intersection of Kietzke Ln and Victorian Ave. The man who died in the accident, a Sparks resident who was aged 55, was found dead on the road just after 3:00 a.m. At first, the Sparks man’s name was not released but it wasl be once the man’s family were informed of his death. Police are saying that the man’s name was Eugene Shorthorn. Mr. Shorthorn was said to be a homeless person who was living in the area of the accident. When found by police, who were responding to a report of the man being down in the road, the Spark Resident had significant injuries to his head and torso. It is being assumed that the man who died was walking in the bike lane at the time of the accident. The investigation by Sparks police will determine if drugs, alcohol or other factors will be the reasons for the man’s death. Businesses in the vicinity of the crash have been canvassed for security camera footage and while Mr. Shorthorn’s death was not caught on camera, three vehicles were in the vicinity at the time of the accident. Three cars are being sought – a semi, a passenger car with a light color paint job and a pickup truck with a light color paint job. Hit and run accidents in Northern Nevada vehicle collisions now come with the highest penalties in the United States. The new hit and run laws, passed in the last legislative session, came into effect on the first day of October. Now, when a driver leaves the scene of an accident where someone is injured they face up to 20 years in jail. The hit and run driver who causes an injury also is not eligible to be given probation for his sentence. Drivers are being informed of the new law by a new campaign from the Nevada department of transportation. The new public service announcements will implore drivers to call 911 and helping the injured person instead of fleeing. Nevada’s previous hit and run statute essentially incentivized drivers involved in an injury accident, who were intoxicated, to flee the scene, sober up and turn themselves into police. Now there is no incentive as the hit and run penalty and the penalty for injuring or killing someone while driving while intoxcated are the same.

A man died on Sunday September 20th in a Reno commercial vehicle accident when his truck rolled over and a passenger was thrown from the vehicle. The accident happened on Highway 80 near mile 41. An investigation into the crash indiciates that the Washoe County Box trailer crash occurred when the truck was going eastward on I-80. The truck was travelling in the slow lane. At some point, the truck began drifting onto the right shoulder. As the driver tried to regain control of the truck, the driver overcorrected and the truck then spun wildly in the left direction. The truck and the trailer it was towing landed on its passenger side and blocked both lanes of eastward travel. A passenger who was sleeping at the time of the accident was thrown and passed away at the accident scene. The driver of the truck was rushed to a Reno hospital for treatment of his injuries. Those injuries are not expected to threaten the life of the driver.

In addition to the damage to the truck, the trailer and the death of the passenger, guardrails on each side of the highway were also damaged. The guardrails were so damaged that after the accident they were blocking part of the road. The trailer being towed by the truck also spilled its load on the highway. There are no reports as to what the truck was carrying at the time of the crash. Cleaning up the aftermath of the accident included moving the truck back onto it’s wheels, cleaning up the cargo that had spilled on the highway and repairing the guardrails that were damaged in the accident.

NV-attorney is the Northern Nevada arm of the Las Vegas family-owned personal injury law firm, Benson and Bingham. We have an expert team of Nevada licensed lawyers that have significant experience with Northern Nevada semi truck collisions, Reno wrongful death accidents and even Washoe County casino injuries. If you are hurt through no fault of your own or had a family member pass away in an accident that was not his or her fault, contact Benson and Bingham today for a free legal consultation. We can help you or surviving family members receive money for hospital bills, lost work, pain and suffering and even car repair. Our firm even offers everyone we represent our happiness guarantee. Our happiness guarantee is exclusive and enables those we represent, if they are unhappy with their final invoice, to ask us to reformulate the bill and develop a fee structure that they approve of.

Commercial vehicle and public bus accidents have been all over the news recently. Our sister office and blog has been writing about commercial vehicle accidents in Southern Nevada, and now we too find ourselves writing about a type of accident like that, a city bus accident in Northern Nevada. As of yet no injuries have been reported from this crash. As we’ve written about extensively, however, not all injuries appear immediately following the moment of the accident. Whiplash injuries and neck and back car accident injuries in Nevada are often seen to present somewhat afterwards, even days or weeks. But regardless, even if no injuries at all were sustained in this accident, the coincidence of all these commercial vehicle accidents in the news is glaring. If you’re injured in a commercial vehicle or bus accident in Reno, contact Benson & Bingham Attorneys at Law today for top legal advice and representation, following a free consultation.

This accident in Reno was a Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) bus on Kietzke Lane. The accident occurred near the intersection of Mill Street, and snarled traffic there for quite some time. Given that the accident occurred a little before 3:30 in the afternoon on the Friday of Labor Day Weekend, we can imagine just how nasty this made the whole area surrounding the Mill Street onramp onto 395. Fortunately, and as we stated earlier, no injuries were yet released or reported. Though this news article on the bus accident in Washoe County mentions it being unclear if lanes were shut temporarily to deal with the accident, a Reno Police Department Lieutenant, one Amy Newman, is quoted in the article as being pretty sure there were closures. That would make sense, given the traffic jam the accident caused.

If you’re injured in a bus accident in Nevada, Benson & Bingham Attorneys at Law can help. This type of accident can seem unique, particularly if you’re on a public bus, and therefore scary. But rest assured, you’re in good hands with Benson & Bingham. We understand the ins and outs of these types of accidents, which are often dealt with similarly to commercial vehicle accidents Nevada. We can fight the insurance companies on your behalf, and get you the compensation you deserve if you did not cause the accident. Contact us today for a free consultation.

Fully 20 vehicles were involved in one chain reaction car crash in Northern Nevada earlier today. Fortunately, early reports are that no one was seriously injured. Early reports from the scene indicate, however, that at least eight people suffered injury from this crash, which reportedly was started by a commercial vehicle negligence in Washoe County. One woman was said to have been airlifted to the hospital. However, this woman was not reported to have been involved in the accident itself, she was just in the middle of pregnancy labor and in need of professional obstetric care. As you can imagine, a 20 car accident near Reno closed down the highway completely in one direction (Interstate 80 in the western direction, to the east of Sparks). Both lanes of the freeway were closed for over three hours, with the full freeway not reopening for roughly five hours after the crash. If you were in labor and stuck in that kind of a traffic snarl, you’d probably need a helicopter to get you to the hospital, too! She was taken to St. Mary’s Hospital in Reno. Again, as far as we’ve heard thus far, the vehicle she was in was not involved in the accident.

The cause of the crash is said to have been a commercial truck negligence in Northern Nevada. A commercial truck carrying gravel was said to have spilled all or part of its contents across the freeway. This created the havoc that saw 8 people injured across a 20 vehicle span. Though have been reported to be minor injuries, they’re still injuries. You can just imagine how gravel spilling across the freeway would cause some drivers to lose control, in turn causing other drivers to lose control trying to avoid them. Stopped traffic then getting struck from behind by vehicles who were either not paying attention momentarily, did not have the time to react, or were speeding in Nevada.

If you’re involved in an accident like this, Benson & Bingham can help. Our top commercial truck accident attorneys in Southern Nevada and Northern Nevada know how to prosecute your case, and can get you the best coverage available for your injuries. Contact Benson & Bingham today for a free consultation.

While student film makers for eons have used ketchup as a substitute for blood, the tomato based condiment, to the relief of a number of NHP troopers and clean-up workers, does not look as gory in real life. In late February 2013, a Reno commercial vehicle accident resulted in thousands of cans and bottles of ketchup ended up smeared across Highway 80 close to Robb drive in Reno. The Reno ketchup fiasco slowed traffic for hours as the 4 lane mega highway was reduced from four lanes to one. The accident happened as the driver of the condiment carrying big rig swerved to avoid another vehicle, crashed into a cement median and then had the contents of his truck torn open by a light pole. If you have suffered an injury or had property damaged in a Washoe County big rig crash, NV-Attorney can help you to recover financially.

Cleaning up of the over 42,000 pounds of ketchup required significant creativity. Workers first covered the spilled ketchup with sand and then used snow plows to scoop the sand and ketchup mixture. Many Reno residents volunteered to clean up the ketchup if the trucking company provided hot dogs and cheeseburgers.

Northern Nevada big rig accidents can be financially devastating to anyone – especially when those injured need to spar with insurance companies to get their hospital and other bills paid. NV-attorney, the Northern Nevada arm of the family owned Las Vegas personal injury law firm, Benson and Bingham, has significant experience with all types of personal injury law including Las Vegas commercial vehicle crashes, Reno automobile accidents, Las Vegas pedestrian accidents and even casino accidents that have happened outside of the Silver State when the company’s corporate headquarters is based in Nevada. Our attorneys are able to get our clients the best possible reimbursements from insurance companies intent on reducing their financial liabilities.

Northern Nevada and Southern Nevada surpass the national average in vehicle deaths in a recent CDC report on non-natural deaths across the United States. Nevada led in all categories including drug overdoses, vehicle accidents and suicide. The Silver State’s drug deaths come from a litany of substances including alcohol and prescription opiates. In fact, prescription pain killers were twice as responsible for Nevada deaths as other drugs like heroin and cocaine combined. For the 10 years studied by the CDC, there were over 4,300 deaths due to vehicle crashes. Some of these were Reno motorcycle accidents; others were Northern Nevada car crashes, others were pedestrian deaths, ATVs, bus accidents and even airplane and helicopter crashes. If you have been injured or had a relative killed in a Reno automobile accident, go to NV-Attorney.com today to book your free legal consultation.

While Nevada had 16.9 deaths per every 100,000 people over the 1999-2009 timeframe, the United States averaged 15.6 deaths per 100,000. Nevada is a large state, however, and for miles traveled in the Silver State, Nevada actually ranks significantly lower for Nevada automobile deaths. Drunk and drugged driving is one of the primary factors in Nevada automobile accident deaths. Other contributing factors to Northern Nevada automobile deaths include speeding, poor road conditions and distracted driving. Nevada’s Department of Transportation is working to reduce these vehicle deaths with a number of driver education and enforcement efforts including Joining Forces, increased DUI checkpoints and seatbelt use educational programs.

NV-Attorney is the Northern Nevada branch of Benson and Bingham, one of Las Vegas’ leading personal injury firms. Our attorneys have significant experience with Las Vegas vehicle accidents, Reno pedestrian accidents and Nevada wrongful death cases. Our attorneys are successful because of the relationships they build with their clients as cases move through the legal process. Our firm even offers those we represent our exclusive happiness guarantee; if, at the end of your case, you feel your final bill is unfair, we will work with you to develop a fee structure that meets your approval.

Many Northern Nevadans and Californians were disappointed this week when Hurricane Sandy forced the delay of a report many have been waiting patiently for. Yesterday, the National Safety Transportation Board had to postpone the previously scheduled hearing to announce the causes that lead to the horrific Reno Amtrak crash from last June. In the Reno train accident last June, over 20 people were injured and 6 were killed. The crashed happened when a Semi Truck sped through warning barriers as a west bound Amtrak train crossed North US 95. If you or a relative has been injured or killed in a Reno commercial vehicle accident, NV-attorney can help you recover financially for them catastrophe.

One of the reasons the NTSB report concerned so many involved in the crash is that in August a federal judge, Valerie Cooke, granted motions by John Davis Trucking Company. The company, which owned the truck involved in the crash, maintains that safety features intended to alert drivers of an oncoming train were not working the day of the crash. John Davis Trucking attorneys state that oncoming train flashing lights and gate crossing arm malfunctioned at the time of the crash. The company’s lawyers even attest that Amtrak employees destroyed evidence of the malfunctions that led to the Reno semi-truck crash.

NV-Attorney is the Northern Nevada arm of the leading Las Vegas personal injury law firm, Benson and Bingham. Our family owned firm was founded by cousins Ben Bingham and Joseph Benson in 2003 with the goal of assisting those hurt in accidents that were not their fault. Our licensed Nevada personal injury attorneys have experience with cases in both the Northern and Southern reaches of the Silver State. While we have won cases for our clients in all types of personal injury suits, we specialize in Las Vegas pedestrian accidents, Nevada semi-truck accidents and even casino injuries outside of Nevada when the company’s corporate headquarters are based in Nevada.

The National Transportation Safety Board has finally release its report on the tragic semi-truck train accident just outside Reno that killed 6 people June of last year. The crash also injured dozens of people. If you have been injured in a commercial truck accident in Northern Nevada, contact NV-Attorney, the Northern Nevada arm of Las Vegas’ premiere personal injury firm, Benson and Bingham.

The NTSB report includes statements from a witness that said he didn’t believe the driver of the Peterbilt tractor trailer, Lawrence Valli, had any idea he was approaching a speeding oncoming train. The witness reports also state that the train crossing’s safety features like cross arms and flashing lights were in working order.

The report from the NTSB is only a compendium of data associated with the Northern Nevada big rig accident, and provides no analysis or states any opinion of fault in the crash. The NTSB basically accepts and uses all witness reports and forensic data as it investigates a crash.

John Davis Trucking, the firm that owned the Peterbilt big rig and employed the 43-year old now deceased truck driver in the accident, attests that safety features at the railroad crossing were not functioning and were repaired by Union Pacific Railroad employees. If you have been injured in a Reno Semi truck accident, contact NV-Attorney today.

NV-Attorney’s parent firm, Benson and Bingham has been representing Nevadan’s injured in accidents that were no fault of their own since 2003. Our team of Nevada licensed personal injury attorneys work closely with our clients to develop the best possible relationship as a case goes to trial. These relationships are the key to our success, not limited to the $24,000,000 we secured for our clients in 2010 and 2011 but also the large number of referrals we receive. We also offer every client our exclusive happiness guarantee – if at the end of your case, you are unhappy with your final bill, we will work with you to arrive at an invoice that meets your approval.

In June 2011, an AMTRACK train crashed into a semi truck that was attempting to stop his speeding truck, Five passengers on the train headed to San Fruancsico were killed, as well as Lawrence Valli , the driver of the big rig truck. Approximately 20 to 30 people were injured in the crash. The NTSB (the United States National Transportation Safety Board) is still investigating the cause of the accident. The rail line is operated by Union Pacific Railroad and the trucking company who owned the truck is John Davis Trucking. If you have been injured or had a relative killed in a Reno semi-truck accident, NV-Attorney can represent you in your personal injury case.

John Davis Trucking alleges that the crash was caused by defective warning gates that did not give Mr. Valli enough time to stop his truck safely and bear responsibility for the accident. The trucking company also alleges that workers for the Union Pacific Railroad tampered with and destroyed evidence of the rail operator’s culpability after the Northern Nevada big rig crash. John Davis Trucking won a motion last week that will enable them to depose Union Pacific workers. Judge Valerie Cooke granted the motion that will enable the trucking company’s lawyers to ask whether the warning system motor was tampered with and that the crossing gate was quickly replaced. Union Pacific disagrees with the judge’s ruling and John Davis trucking’s assertion that the railroad line is culpable for the crash.

NV-Attorney is the Northern Nevada arm of top ranked Las Vegas personal injury law firm, Benson and Bingham. In 2010, we secured over $24,000,000 for our clients, helping them with the financial burdens that arise from Washoe County commercial vehicle collisions, Reno auto accidents and Nevada wrongful deaths. We also offer our clients our exclusive happiness guarantee where after the successful completion of your case you are not happy with your bill, we will work with you to determine a fee structure you approve of.